The UNASUR summit was not able to relieve tension among the countries of South America.

The meeting of UNASUR (Union of South American Nations) in Bariloche, Argentina, did not relieve the tension between the region's leaders, even after seven hours of intense discussions about the military agreement between Colombia and the United States.

Government sources said the Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, had wanted the meeting ended in a "climate of peace," but the speeches were marked by tension, particularly between the presidents of Colombia, Álvaro Uribe, and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, as well as Ecuador's Rafael Correa and Bolivia’s Evo Morales.

The presidents of these South American republics called on Uribe to show to the members of the UNASUL Security Council a copy of the treaty it had signed with the United States and asked for access to the Colombian bases that will be used by the Americans.

Uribe, however, did not respond to requests and said the agreement with the United States will not mean loss of "sovereignty" in Colombia. Uribe also said that these bases are not American but Colombian and will have only American assistance that will be carefully controlled by the Colombian government. He also indicated that the agreement is already a fait accompli and asked for joint actions among MERCOSUR countries in combating trafficking in drugs and arms.

Morales repeated his demand for a regional referendum involving voters in all the countries of South America for the purpose of addressing the question of the military agreement between Colombia and the United States.

Correa also pointed out that Colombia is the country of the region that proportionally invests more money in its military than do other South American countries and also produces more drugs than other countries in the region. Uribe denied those accusations.

The whole debate between the leaders of UNASUR was broadcast live on major television stations in Argentina. Lula regretted the live broadcast of the meeting. "I said from the beginning that a meeting open to the press would not work," affirmed Lula, “because the presidents would not speak frankly and would only direct their remarks to their domestic audiences."

The meeting ended with a document indicating that the subjects of Defense will be discussed at the next meeting of the Defense Council in September.

The final communiqué produced by the meeting says that South America should be a "zone of peace" and that "foreign forces" should not interfere in the sovereignty of the countries of the region. The document also says that South American nations should cooperate to fight terrorism and drug trafficking.